Hiroyuki Yabe

Ninety Nine got their break on a TV “comedy battle” show, with manzai acts competing for the chance to stay on the show each week. The diminuitive Okamura is one of the best of the young boke (dimwit), with an unpredictable and wicked sense of humor. He is also willing to try just about anything, from racehorse riding to passing his body through a tennis racket. Yabe is a soccer freak who played the game in high school. Like most of the members of the Yoshimoto stable, they come from Osaka and speak the distinctive dialect. The title of their hugely successful Metcha Metcha Iketeru show is one example of this “naniwa ben”. (By japan-zone)